DAKAR, Senegal — Assailants armed with machetes and automatic weapons attacked the state television station, the airport and the main military base in Congo's capital in what appeared to be a coup attempt early Monday, before being repelled by the country's military, officials and witnesses said.
Congo's government spokesman Lambert Mende confirmed the attack, saying around 40 people were killed in the exchange of fire Monday morning, including 16 at the military base, 16 at the airport and eight at the TV station. Another six were captured, he said. He also confirmed that shooting had broken out in Lubumbashi, the country's second-largest city located in southeastern Congo, though by afternoon calm had returned.
"These are terrorists, you can't call them anything else," Mende said.
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